Genius is immediate, but talent takes time.

Flanner’s aphorism contrasts two kinds of creative power: “genius” as something that appears to arrive whole—an instantaneous apprehension, vision, or leap of insight—versus “talent” as a capacity that matures through duration, practice, and accumulation. The line implies that what we call genius can look effortless because its decisive moment is sudden, while talent is legible as process: training, revision, and time-bound development. It also subtly critiques the romance of genius by reminding readers that most admirable work is built, not merely sparked. In a literary context, it can be read as a defense of craft and patience against the myth that brilliance alone guarantees lasting achievement.